knight



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1. W. H. KNIGHT & B. M. BENTLEY.

ELEOTRIG WAY. N0. 276,829. Patented May 1,1883.

fi'bZ e 12 for s N. PETERS, nalcrmm n mr, WzsNngiomDC.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

W. H. KNIGHT 85 E. M. BENTLEY.

ELECTRIC WAY.

No. 276,829. Patented May 1,1883.

N. PETERS. Phclo-Lvlhogripher. Walhinglm. D. C.

junction-box in the conduit.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WALTER H. KNIGHT AND EDWARD M. BENTLEY, OF \VASHINGTON, D. U.

ELECTRIC WAY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent; No. 276,829, dated May 1, 1883.

' Application filed March 27', 1883. (No model.)

'[0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, WALTER H. KNIGHT and EDWARD M. BENTLEY, citizens of the United States, residing at \Nashington, in the District of Columbia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Ways,of which the following is a specification.

Our invention consists in a system of electric conductors of differentclasses-as electriclight, telegraph, and telephone wires--within inductive proximity of one another, by which mutual inductive disturbance is prevented.

It is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein Figures 1, 2, 3, and 6 represent electric circuits arranged according to our invention. Fig. at is a perspective view, with parts broken away, of a conduit containing our arrangement of circuits. Fig. 5 shows the inventl0napp1iedto aerial lines, the wires crossing one another at the posts. Fig. 7 shows a Fig. 8 is a diagram showing circuits entering and leaving the system, and Fig. 9 is a detail of thejunction-box.

The wires in our system are divided into three classes-via, telephone wires, lightwires, and telegraph-wires, the last includingtelegraph-wires ofall kinds, as fire, district, and stock telegraphs, as well as the ordinary telegraph-wires; Assuming that wires of any one class can be placed within moderate distance ofeach otherwithout danger, we providemcans whereby the wires of one class shall not be disturbed by the induction from wires of any other class. It is necessary for safety and convenience that all light-circuits should be provided with a metallic return. We take advantage of this fact to provide a basis for rendering a second class of wires, preferably the telephone-wires, sai'e fom disturbance by the light-wires.

Let A and A, Fig. 1, be the direct and return wires of an electric-light circuit. Then every parallel wire which is in the median plane perpendicular to the plane otA A is in a field of no induction, the two limbs A and A tending to produce equal and opposite effects; but as the number of wires which can be in this plane is verylimited we provide an arrangement whereby wires out of. this plane are in a neutral position. A cross-section of two dimensions can thus be tilled with wires in non-inductive positions, and the number that can be so placed is practically unlimited. To accomplish this we run every telephonewire T which is out of the median or neutral plane an equal distance in close proximity to each limb A A alternately, the wire crossing from one side to the other at intervals. Fig. 2 shows how any number of telephone-wires 'l and any number of light-wires A A may be arranged in this manner, all the telephonewires crossing each other at the same point and each being in the same relation to every set of light-wires A A in the vertical column. In practice the wires 1 will be braided over one another, as shown in Figs. (3 and 7, at each junction-box so that every wire may be brought to the surface for the purpose of testing and making connections. If nowa single telegraph-wire be brought into the inductive field of a series of light and telephone wires arranged in the manner above described, it will be disturbed by the light-wires, and will itself disturb the telephone-wires. To render it entirely neutral with respect to the others it must be doubled, when it will not induce into other wires or be induced into; but as it would be a greatexpense to double all telegraph-wires we provide a single return for a number ol" direct wires. On trunk-lines this common return-wire will. be put to ground outside the city or area of disturbance. The batteries on each halfot thedirectlines may have their opposite poles connected to the common return, and the return may be of better conducting material than the direct. lherefore one return can be used for a greatnumbcr of direct circuits, and it will perform all the function of a ground return and will in addition neutralize the inductive effect of the direct wires.

P, Fig.3, are the telegraph-wires, arranged in proximity to the light-wires A A and the telephone-wires T. d d are the direct wires, and r is the common return therefor, they being wound together in parallel spirals around an insulating-core, C, so that they both hold c011- tiuually the same relation to external wires. A cable thus constructed is not claimed hercin, being covered by a pending application of even date herewith.

In Fig. 1 is shown an application of the above-described combination of wires to a conduit. 0 shows a part of a conduit built up of masonary or in any suitable manner. \Vithin C are shown the wires in grooved or perforated blocks of suitable material, though they may be supported and insulated in any manner desired. On either side of the conduit are shown the direct and return light-wires A A in vertical rows. In the center of the conduit are first the anti-induction telegraph-eables I in blocks S, and above them the telephone-wires in grooves in blocks B, and crossing one another at an intermediate point of the conduit. If necessary, a thin layer of metal may be placed between the several blocks B, to prevent interinduction between wires T.

Fi 7 shows a junction-box with part of the wires broken away, at which all wires are accessible for testing and connections. The light-wires A A are seen running across on each side of the box, the upper part of those in front of the box being broken away. a a is a loop taken from the upper inside wire in the back of the box and led out through openin g 0 to supply an arc-lamp. An incandescent lamp is supplied by wires I I taken from main lines K K and led out through the same openin The telegraph-wires P which are intended for through-lines are led directly across, while one or more of those intended for local use are looped up over a cross-bar, E, extending between the walls of the box. The top of this bar is provided with saw-cuts, into which the individual wires of the cable I are placed, so that they may each one be accessible. p and 7b are respectively a direct line and a loop taken out through opening G in the side of the box, The telephone-wires T are led into the box, and are there braided or woven across each other, in the manner shown in Fig. (i, so that a V-shaped depression is left on alternate sides of the bank of wires at each junction-box. By this arrangement every wire is brought to the surface, so as to be accessible, and at the same time the proper inductive relation to neighboring light-wires is preserved. This is neatly accomplished by bending the wires around notched sticks, D, Fig. 9, which are rectangular or diamond-shaped in cross-section, and then around similar sticks, D, triangular in cross-section. Thus all the wires in the vertical row on the front side of the box are led around D, then around D, and then enter the vertical row of holes on the back side of the box into the next section. The succeeding vertical rows are treated in like manner. The pieces I) D are held in place by the strain of the wires, and when the wires are all in place form a converging or V-shaped switch-board, where all the wires are properly numbered and classified. The box is shown as provided with a cover and a suitable drainage, though these details do not pertain to our invention. The wires T may be used as telegraph-wires, and the wires I as telephonewires.

In Fig. 8 is shown a diagram of our system as applied to a number of telephone and light wires as they are arranged in the streets of a city. U U represent crossing streets, A A the light-mains, and T the telephone-wires. V is a telephone central station, and e 'u a subscribers stations. it represents a dynamo feeding the arc-light a, and a is a series of incandescent lamps supplied, as shown, by multiple are from the street-mains. It will be seen that each circuit leaves the conduit at a dis tance of an even number of sections from the place where it entered, so that there will be as much positive as negativeindnction, and thus produce the desired neutrality.

As shown in the drawings, in case of the line to it may be necessary, in order to bring the wire out at a certain junction-box, to lead the wire into the conduit on the farther side of the street up which it comes. By this means a wire led into the conduit from a side street may be taken out at an even or odd number from the corner by taking care that it passes into the conduit from that side of the street which is an even number of sections away from the house to which the wire is to lead. In order to ei'tect this, two or more junctionboxes should be provided wherever the way crosses a street, and these junction-boxes, as well as all the others, should be separated by a distance of one or more whole sections.

It is evident that in the arrangement shown in Fig.1 the two light-wires may cross each other at intervals and the telephone-wires remain straight, as indicated in Fig. 10. This construction is not specifically claimed herein, being reserved for a future application. We also reserve the right to claim all matters herein shown or described, but not claimed, in subsequent applications, as they are of our invention and are not hereby abandoned. The conduitis showna-s provided with'vacant openin gs for the reception of new wires. A method of inserting such wires will be claimed in a subsequent application.

What we claim as our invention is 1. The combination of the direct and return wires of an electric circuit, having a single neutral inductive plane, with a part of a second circuit arranged alternately on opposite sides of said neutral plane, so as to avoid inductive eii'ects.

2. In an underground conduit provided with jllIlClilOlbbOXGS dividing the conduit into sections, two classes of conductors, one disturbing and the other protected from disturbance therefrom, the conductors of the two classes extending for one section or a certain number of sections or fractions of a section in such proximity as to produce a certain inductive tendency, and then changing their relative po ICO sitions and extending a certain distance in such proximity as to produce an equal and opposite inductive tendency.

3. In combination with the direct and return wires of a disturbing circuit, a second single wire arranged in nearer parallel proximity to the direct wire at one point and in like parallel proximity to the return-wire at another point.

4. The combination,in an anti-inductive system of electric wires, of a grounded circuit and two separate direct and return circuits, one of which is formed ot'two wires running in straight sections.

5. The combination of a conduit for electric wires, made in longitudinal sections, a direct and return circuit therein, and single wires inductively symmetrical to said circuit and crossing one another between the sections.

6. The combination of two wires formingthe direct and return of one circuit and having a neutral inductive plane or a series of neutral planes, with a third wire forming part of another circuit, one of the circuits crossing the.

neutral plane at intervals, so that the induction in the section between any two adjacent crossings will be neutralized by the opposite induction of the next section.

7. The combination of two wires forming the direct and return of one circuit, with a third wire forming part of another circuit, one of the circuits changing its relative position to the other at definite intervals, but remaining in substantially constant relation between such points of change, so that the induction in the section between any two adjacentpoin ts of change will be neutralized by the opposite induction of the next section.

8. An anti-inductive system of wires carrying ditt'erent classes of currents, in which all the wires run in straight or substantially straight sections in the direction of the line of way, and in which the wiresof one class reverse their inductive positions at intervals with respect to the wires of the other classes.

9. The combination, with the direct and Ieturn wires of one circuit, of a second circuit arranged parallel in sections with and alter nately in proximity to the said direct and return wires.

10. Two wires forming the direct and return of one circuit with a single neutral plane, and a third wire forming part of another circuit arranged symmetrically to but out of the said neutral plane.

11. Two wires forming the direct and return of one circuit, with a third wire forming part of another circuit and running first parallel and near to one limb and then in like inductive relation to the other limb of the metallic circuit.

12. In an underground electric-wire conduit, two classes of conductors laid in anti-inductive relation in strips, the said strips being held rigidly at definite distances apart.

13. Thecombination of the conductors T and the insulating-rods D, the conductors being woven around the rods, so as to present a wicker-work surface, whereby each and every wire is made accessible.

14. An electricalconnecting-board formed of conductors and transverse insulating bars woven together, substantially as shown, and for the purpose set forth.

15. An underground electric conduit having the light-wires extending along one side of the conduit and returning on the other side, telephone-wires between and parallel to the light-wires and crossed at intervals, so as to section, and telephone or telegraph wires also 5 running in substantially straight lines through each section, one orboth ofthe difierent classes of wires being crossed over at the ends of the section, so that the different classes of wires run in positive inductive proximity along one section and in equal negative inductive proximity along another section.

19. A direct and return wire forming acorn plete metallic circuit, in combination with a number of single circuits laid in layers and occupying planes parallel or nearly parallel with the plane of the metallic circuit, the wires of each layer crossing over from side to side of the layer at intervals, so as to neutralize induction from or to the metallic circuit.

20. An electric way comprising two or more classes of conductors divided into longitudinal sections, the even sections being equal and opposite the odd sections in inductive influeuce.

21. An electric way comprising two or more classes of conductors and divided into longitudinal sections, the said sections being of equal but alternately-opposite mutual inductive influence, and having circuits entering and leaving the way at a distance apart of an even number of such sections.

22. An underground electric way divided. into equal but alternatcly-opposite inductive sections, and having at the street-crossings two or more junction-boxes separated by the length of one or more sections, so that wires from a side street may be led into either an even or an odd section, for the purpose set forth.

IIO

turn circuit having a neutral plane or a series the adjacent crossings, so as to have neutral of neutral planes, of two or more single eirinductive action with regard to other parallel euits running parallel with and at different circuits. distances from the said plane or planes and crossing; the plane or planes at intervals, substantially as and for the purpose set forth. \Vitnesses:

24-. An anti-inductive system of eleetricl HERBERT KNIGHT, wires in which the wires cross and recross at 1 ll. S. KNIGHT.

XVALTER H. KNIGHT.

23. The combination, with a direct and re intervals, each crossing being the reverse of 10 EDWARD M. BENTLEY 

